Book 5
I am looking for a title for book 5. I have played with the thought of “Burning Bridges,” but it’s not a title that makes me want to pick up a book. I do like the origin of the phrase as it is a military term where they burned the bridges behind them so retreat wouldn’t be an option.
I will send the first person who gives me the title I use for book 5 a free book or audio book of their choice. Here is a quick summary of Book 5:
The book starts with a 20-year-old college student, Harper, working through the loss of her mother (through illness). Harper’s mother made her promise to never go looking for her biological father, and Harper respects her wish, until she dies. Harper discovers her birth was the result of her mother being sex-trafficked for a short period of time, before being rescued. Harper decides to find her biological father, whom she has never had contact with. {Obsessive trivia: Fertilization doesn’t occur immediately when people have sex, but can occur up to 5 days later. So by that definition, they have never met.}
Jon Frederick is hired to help her track him down. Harper naively hopes to find some redeeming quality in bio-dad. Jon’s search reveals Harper’s father was an obnoxious and arrogant man, who after 11 years of ridiculous and abusive behavior, disappears. Harper has her own personal secrets that drive her to find him and complete the story of her mother’s past, even though she loses compassion for the man. (This is based on a true story with the person’s actual criminal history revealed. I have information on this case, beyond his recorded criminal history that came from an undercover agent working in the area. It’s a great story, although at times it’s hard to believe anyone could be so obnoxious.)
Because of the man’s history, suspects in his disappearance are numerous. Jon’s task is to whittle it down, as he does so well. The reader is invited to consider the clues and solve it with him. St. Paul Pioneer Press article on Last Call:
Jon Frederick, BCA investigator, is not a happy man when we meet him in the first pages of Minnesota author Frank Weber’s “Last Call,” the final book in his Minnesota Murder trilogy. In the opening pages, Frederick is at the bedside of Jada, a woman who just gave birth to a baby she says is his. This is not good news, since Frederick is married to pregnant Serena, with whom he has a daughter. And that’s just the beginning of this twisty and sometimes violent story of betrayal.
Besides his personal woes, Frederick is assigned to investigate the disappearance of Audrey Evans, a college student who went missing in Brainerd during a snowstorm. There are few leads, and the short list of suspects is made up of men who visited the small store where Audrey worked on that night of bad weather. While Frederick is investigating, his slippery friend Clay steals Jon’s identity.
The story is told in a variety of voices, including Frederick, Jada, Serena, Clay and Audrey, whose comments are hard to read because she’s kept in a basement and repeatedly violated. But she’s also smart and patient in captivity, making friends with the wife of the man holding her prisoner. Weber pulls the threads together tightly in a blazing conclusion.
The author is a forensic psychologist with 25 years of experience, so he knows what he’s writing about when it comes to crime. First in the Minnesota Mysteries series is “Murder Book” (2017), followed by “The I-94 Murders” (2018).
Sheila DeChantal's review of Lying Close:
Frank Weber is a master of the written word. I was immediately pulled into this hard to put down book that kept me thinking about it when I wasn't able to be reading, as well as thinking about it after I finished the last page. I felt like I was part of the action and able to piece the crime together alongside our protagonist. That is a feat in itself, to make the reader feel as though they are part of what is happening. I enjoy reading books by authors that have the background experience to support what they are writing - Frank Weber has all of that and more. Definitely an author to keep your eye on. This is a book that you don't just read, you experience. I personally, love an experience. I can not wait for what Frank puts to paper next.
I loved the history! I learned as I read. I also love books that are outside the norm and not following a cookie cutter pattern and I found this book to be refreshingly different and insightful from anything I've read before.
Sheila DeChantal, Writer and Book Reviewer at Book Journey
Thank you all for making the True Crime Tuesdays a tremendous success! I would like to offer one more family story, followed by a plethora of old family pictures. 
My grandparents, John and Elizabeth Weber, operated Weber’s Texaco, before Ted took over the business. (It is now Red’s Auto. When my grandparents, John and Elizabeth (Dietz) Weber, owned it, the business barely survived and they retired with nothing. The business was primarily changing tires and engine repair. Ted and Arlene (Seuss) Weber made it a stable business for a couple without children. Red and Pam (Brixius) Sitzman made it successful.)
One evening, Grandma Elizabeth had all of the kids sitting around the table while they waited for Grandpa John to return from a hard day’s work. Grandma was a tough character, and when she noticed something was bothering John Francis (Grandpa’s oldest son from a previous marriage), she asked him to explain.
(John Francis’ mother, Margaret “Maggie” Colter, died as a result of complications of childbirth. Maggie was in Iowa at her sister’s home having the baby, while Grandpa John was gone looking for a farm to buy in Minnesota when she died.)
John Francis revealed that a bully had been picking on him at school. Grandma told him he needs to learn to stand up for himself and fight. So she had him stand, and she started jabbing him with punches, stating, “You look for an opening, and you land a solid punch.” Grandma continued to jab at him, while John Francis repeated, “I’m not going to hit you, mom.”
Finally, Grandpa swung the front door open and entered. As he did so, Grandma glanced his way, and John Francis landed a punch, knocking her to the floor. As Grandpa began yelling, “What is going on here?” Grandma directed him from the floor, “Don’t you punish that boy. He did exactly what he should have done!” And that’s my family…
Thanks for listening,
Frank
I will send the first person who gives me the title I use for book 5 a free book or audio book of their choice. Here is a quick summary of Book 5:
The book starts with a 20-year-old college student, Harper, working through the loss of her mother (through illness). Harper’s mother made her promise to never go looking for her biological father, and Harper respects her wish, until she dies. Harper discovers her birth was the result of her mother being sex-trafficked for a short period of time, before being rescued. Harper decides to find her biological father, whom she has never had contact with. {Obsessive trivia: Fertilization doesn’t occur immediately when people have sex, but can occur up to 5 days later. So by that definition, they have never met.}
Jon Frederick is hired to help her track him down. Harper naively hopes to find some redeeming quality in bio-dad. Jon’s search reveals Harper’s father was an obnoxious and arrogant man, who after 11 years of ridiculous and abusive behavior, disappears. Harper has her own personal secrets that drive her to find him and complete the story of her mother’s past, even though she loses compassion for the man. (This is based on a true story with the person’s actual criminal history revealed. I have information on this case, beyond his recorded criminal history that came from an undercover agent working in the area. It’s a great story, although at times it’s hard to believe anyone could be so obnoxious.)
Because of the man’s history, suspects in his disappearance are numerous. Jon’s task is to whittle it down, as he does so well. The reader is invited to consider the clues and solve it with him. St. Paul Pioneer Press article on Last Call:
Jon Frederick, BCA investigator, is not a happy man when we meet him in the first pages of Minnesota author Frank Weber’s “Last Call,” the final book in his Minnesota Murder trilogy. In the opening pages, Frederick is at the bedside of Jada, a woman who just gave birth to a baby she says is his. This is not good news, since Frederick is married to pregnant Serena, with whom he has a daughter. And that’s just the beginning of this twisty and sometimes violent story of betrayal.
Besides his personal woes, Frederick is assigned to investigate the disappearance of Audrey Evans, a college student who went missing in Brainerd during a snowstorm. There are few leads, and the short list of suspects is made up of men who visited the small store where Audrey worked on that night of bad weather. While Frederick is investigating, his slippery friend Clay steals Jon’s identity.
The story is told in a variety of voices, including Frederick, Jada, Serena, Clay and Audrey, whose comments are hard to read because she’s kept in a basement and repeatedly violated. But she’s also smart and patient in captivity, making friends with the wife of the man holding her prisoner. Weber pulls the threads together tightly in a blazing conclusion.
The author is a forensic psychologist with 25 years of experience, so he knows what he’s writing about when it comes to crime. First in the Minnesota Mysteries series is “Murder Book” (2017), followed by “The I-94 Murders” (2018).
Sheila DeChantal's review of Lying Close:Frank Weber is a master of the written word. I was immediately pulled into this hard to put down book that kept me thinking about it when I wasn't able to be reading, as well as thinking about it after I finished the last page. I felt like I was part of the action and able to piece the crime together alongside our protagonist. That is a feat in itself, to make the reader feel as though they are part of what is happening. I enjoy reading books by authors that have the background experience to support what they are writing - Frank Weber has all of that and more. Definitely an author to keep your eye on. This is a book that you don't just read, you experience. I personally, love an experience. I can not wait for what Frank puts to paper next.
I loved the history! I learned as I read. I also love books that are outside the norm and not following a cookie cutter pattern and I found this book to be refreshingly different and insightful from anything I've read before.
Sheila DeChantal, Writer and Book Reviewer at Book Journey
Thank you all for making the True Crime Tuesdays a tremendous success! I would like to offer one more family story, followed by a plethora of old family pictures. My grandparents, John and Elizabeth Weber, operated Weber’s Texaco, before Ted took over the business. (It is now Red’s Auto. When my grandparents, John and Elizabeth (Dietz) Weber, owned it, the business barely survived and they retired with nothing. The business was primarily changing tires and engine repair. Ted and Arlene (Seuss) Weber made it a stable business for a couple without children. Red and Pam (Brixius) Sitzman made it successful.)One evening, Grandma Elizabeth had all of the kids sitting around the table while they waited for Grandpa John to return from a hard day’s work. Grandma was a tough character, and when she noticed something was bothering John Francis (Grandpa’s oldest son from a previous marriage), she asked him to explain.
(John Francis’ mother, Margaret “Maggie” Colter, died as a result of complications of childbirth. Maggie was in Iowa at her sister’s home having the baby, while Grandpa John was gone looking for a farm to buy in Minnesota when she died.)
John Francis revealed that a bully had been picking on him at school. Grandma told him he needs to learn to stand up for himself and fight. So she had him stand, and she started jabbing him with punches, stating, “You look for an opening, and you land a solid punch.” Grandma continued to jab at him, while John Francis repeated, “I’m not going to hit you, mom.”
Finally, Grandpa swung the front door open and entered. As he did so, Grandma glanced his way, and John Francis landed a punch, knocking her to the floor. As Grandpa began yelling, “What is going on here?” Grandma directed him from the floor, “Don’t you punish that boy. He did exactly what he should have done!” And that’s my family…
Thanks for listening,
Frank
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